Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Last week work took me to the charming little town of Oxford, MS. I'm not going to be applying for a Mississippi Ambassador of Tourism position anytime soon, but I did enjoy my brief stay here. The downtown square was so quaint and pretty. I wish I had taken more pictures, but it was rainy most of the time. This is the courthouse in the center of town- beautiful.

Last weekend, Mr. M and I finally paid a visit to the newly opened Tin Roof. We had a good time with some friends we hadn't seen in a while. Very fun atmosphere and great live music. And may I personally recommended the Sunny Quesadilla? So yum!

Stationery is such a great gift right? I know I love receiving it! Look at my new note cards and address labels.

As I mentioned, the girlfriends and I enjoyed a fun outing this past Sunday. We had an early dinner and drinks at Cocina Superior. Lesson learned: ALWAYS order the El Chango to drink and the Chocolate Banana Empanada for dessert. Seriously- so good. After dinner, we headed off to the BJCC to see Wicked! I laughed, I got goosebumps, I noticed myself occasionally singing along, and I sometimes felt a huge adrenaline rush when someone hit a particularly difficult note or the lights flashed wildly. It was so good, and after reading the book so many years ago, I was thrilled to finally see it come to life on stage. Sadly, these are the only two pictures I have from the evening-

Waiting for the show to begin.

A sweet little lady attempted to take this ridiculously bad photo of us with my phone. Thankfully, Candace had a real camera in her purse and will have a much better group shot of all the girls.

After all the Wicked fun, I'm considering adding this to my already super long list of books to read-

Anyone know if it's good? Apparently there are four books total in the "Wicked" series, with this being the second.

This week work has me in Houston for a few days. Here's the view from my window.

And finally, I did some thinking about this post. I must have been overly cracked out on coffee yesterday. Emma Stone is officially going into my best dressed category. I mean, how could I have ever doubted her?

Monday, February 27, 2012

In the interest of full disclosure, I must warn you that I watched ZERO red carpet coverage yesterday because I had another engagement during all of the Academy Awards festivities. Then I had to promptly hit the hay as soon as I got home last night in preparation for a 4:00 a.m. wake-up call. But of course, as soon as I got two free seconds in the airport this morning, I immediately had to look up pictures from fashion's biggest night. While my opinions are far from flawless even on a good day, I'm certain that after less than 4 hours of sleep, 2.5 cups of coffee, and a quick scan of some internet photographs, I'm not exactly going to bring my fashion A-game.

But for what it's worth, here are my favorite Oscar looks:

Viola Davis - she had me from the start with the emerald green. Gorgeous color.

Michelle Williams - I'm usually not a fan of her looks, but this is the perfect balance of vintage and elegance. Plus I die for that color!

Milla Jovavich - simply stunning.

And no list is complete without a few fashion misses:

Jenny from the Block looks a little cheap and cheezy. I didn't care for this dress.

Melissa McCarthy - This is just a blah mess. A surprising let down for me. She usually makes much better choices.

Maya Rudolph - did she pick this up at the local David's Bridal? Because I swear I've seen this exact dress there.

Cameron Diaz- first of all, didn't this hairstyle go out in the mid 90's? She's getting a little old for the whole California beach babe look. Plus, I'm over the whole "naked dress" look. BORE-ring.

Sandra- another of my usual favorites. I'm not sure why I don't like this. It's just...awkward?

On the fence looks...

Emma Stone - Oh Emma, how I love you. While this dress isn't terrible, it seems to almost swallow her. Doesn't she look a little lost in all the fabric? Plus the big bow has been done- more than once. But I do love when people forego the basic neutrals and bring some color to the red carpet! She's definitely not a favorite for me this time, but I can't bring myself to call her a "miss" either.

Gwyneth Paltrow - fits her like a glove. Very simple, but also timeless. Perfect skin and make-up. I just can't decide what I think of the cape-look...

For the night's Fashion Grand prize- drum roll please.....

Claire Danes!!!

I fall in more and more in love with her fashion all the time. I'm sure some of you are thinking my sleep deprivation is to blame for this choice. And maybe you are right. But slight prom feel aside, I think she looks amazing. The hair, make-up, and jewels are perfection. And the pretty little cupcake dress- I think you either love it or hate it. And I luuuuuurve it!

Like I said earlier, I did not get to watch any of the actual red carpet or awards ceremony. Let's be honest- I wasn't THAT disappointed about it either. Instead I had a fun girls' night, and who really cares about who actually wins the awards? Aside from the red carpet fashion, my interest in the award show is very limited. I think I usually have seen on average 2 or 3 of the nominated movies each year. However, I did see a little Oscar snippet on the news at the airport this morning. Heard that a silent film won best picture- bleh. Exactly why I rarely watch. But I did see that Meryl Streep won for Leading Actress. Meryl is the queen. She can do no wrong in my book, and I loved her speech! Watch the hilariousness here.

Who were your favorites? Who did you find disappointing? I heard Borat dude dumped an urn of Bisquick on Ryan Seacrest- what was that all about??

Friday, February 24, 2012

Have you heard "Starships" yet? Hands-down the most fun jam on the airwaves right now! Can't. Stop. Listening. Do yourself a favor, and if you haven't already, listen here. I can't wait for the video release.

Fun Friday Tunes- Honorable Mention

"We are Young" by Fun.

"Glad You Came" by The Wanted

"So Good" by B.o.B.

"Turn Me On" by David Guetta and Nicki Minaj

"International Love" by Pitbull

"Some Nights" by Fun.

"Give Me All Your Luv" by Madonna

"Birthday Cake" by Rihanna

"Stupid H*e" by Nicki Minaj

"Runaway Baby" by Bruno Mars

What other songs would you put on a fun playlist to get you pumped for the weekend?

I'm not what I would call a "lipstick person". I own a few shades, but I by no means wear it on a daily basis. I'm more a gloss or tinted chapstick kind of gal. Well supposedly, neon colors are a big thing this season (or so says the Bobbi Brown clerk who talked me into this crazy color). I've already worn my new neon pink lipstick once and it's pretty fun if Idosaysomyself!

D. Cocktail

How YUM and FUN does this little concoction look? I pinned the recipe for this Rasberry Beer Cocktail and cannot wait to try it!

HappyFriday!!!

***Complete coincidence that most of my "fun" things happen to be pink. But now that I think about it, pink is definitely the most fun color, right?***Also to note, all beauty items mentioned in this post were purchase pre-Lent. :)

Thursday, February 23, 2012

Hey folks, Happy Thursday! I'm hitting the trail out of Mississippi and back to Alabama, where the air smells sweeter and the sun shines a little brighter. Needless to say, I had a little extra pep in my step this morning.

In honor of the upcoming Oscar weekend, here's a little Thursday chuckle for you.

Best Picture NomineesBrought to you by the hilarious (and sometimes infuriating) Clay Travis-

And my personal favorite, Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

Check out the full list of nominees (and the pretty funny article) HERE.

And just for good measure, in case your hunger for college football is still not satisfied, check out THIS. Hehe. Or THIS.

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

As I'm sure you all are well aware, today marks the beginning of the Lenten season. Although Lent is most commonly observed by Catholics, it is nonetheless a great way for any Christian to try to make a sacrifice or pledge to prepare for the Easter miracle. The idea is to give up something or make a concerted effort to accomplish something that is hard for you. And hopefully, whatever you do (or don't do) will teach you something.

The first thing I'm giving up this year is fried food. I considered giving up fast food all together, as I have done before, but that's just not realistic for me. Quite frankly, my work travel, more often than not, takes me to small towns where I literally have no meal options other than fast food (aside from starving of course). Because French fries are my go-to comfort food when I've had a long day, this will definitely be a sacrifice for me. And hopefully, this sacrifice will help me make healthier food choices when on the road for work and discover new ways to unwind and destress.

Secondly, I have decided to give up wasteful spending on unnecessary beauty products. This is my weakness, and when I looked back through a few months of spending, I was amazed at how much money I throw away on beauty items. I think very little about grabbing a $4 tube of lip gloss or throwing a $7 bottle of nail polish into my shopping cart. But when you do this EVERY time you set foot in Target or Ulta or Walmart or CVS or where-ever, it starts to add up. My bathroom is overflowing with eyeshadows and nail polishes and hair products that I've only used once. Of course, I do have some go-to products that I use daily (or almost every day):

Baby Lips- my faves are Quench and Peach Kiss

Moroccan Oil - perfect for taming frizzy hair

Salon Grafix Dry Shampoo

Ahava daily facial moisturizer

My favorite daily lotion. Non-greasy and great scent!

But starting today- no more throwing money away on unnecessary products for my hair, face, skin, nails, etc. I have more than enough make-up, nail polish, hair products, and lotion to get me through Lent without having to purchase anything. The only exception to the rule will be if I run out of foundation. I've worn Bare Minerals for several years now and this is the one product where I never step outside of the box.

Hopefully, in a small way, this sacrifice will help remove my focus from some of the material things in life that we are all distracted by.

Finally, I am also making a pledge to complete a bible study. I just purchased this study by Beth Moore. Has anyone done it before? I've read great things and am so excited!